A few years ago we bought the combo of a 2007 Avalanche, 5.3 and a 2014 Grey Wolf, 30 ft, dry weight of 5296, and have towed this combo about 6 times/year.Yesterday my Avalanche started to make this horrible/weird clicking noise. Local mechanic thinks it is the cylinder lifter or cam shaft and we may need to get a new engine.Questions1) I was naive and never did enough research, did we break our truck by pulling this camper?2) Would you trade in the truck as-is, taking the hit on the potentially broken motor, for a 2500 of something3) Would you fix the camshaft/whatever it is and keep it as it is a fine towing combo4) Would you do what you need to do to get it running and trade it off for a 2500My brother is a mechanic so if it turns out to need an engine he is checking prices to see how cheap it can be done.Thanks for the advice, and I realize I'm an idiot and should have answered this question years ago before it broke!UPDATE:my brother (a mechanic) found a collapsed lifter, ended up replacing 4 lifters one one side and it is fixed for $650. However, I'm now pretty gun shy about this truck. Is it reasonable to expect that now that it is fixed I can go back to not worrying about it? Or is it likely a lifter will go out again?

Not enough info. What are the capacities of the Avalanche? And how much does the TT weigh loaded ready to camp. Could be it just broke.

Luminajd wrote:A few years ago we bought the combo of a 2007 Avalanche, 5.3 and a 2014 Grey Wolf, 30 ft, dry weight of 5296, and have towed this combo about 6 times/year.Yesterday my Avalanche started to make this horrible/weird clicking noise. Local mechanic thinks it is the cylinder lifter or cam shaft and we may need to get a new engine.Questions1) I was naive and never did enough research, did we break our truck by pulling this camper?2) Would you trade in the truck as-is, taking the hit on the potentially broken motor, for a 2500 of something3) Would you fix the camshaft/whatever it is and keep it as it is a fine towing combo4) Would you do what you need to do to get it running and trade it off for a 2500My brother is a mechanic so if it turns out to need an engine he is checking prices to see how cheap it can be done.Thanks for the advice, and I realize I'm an idiot and should have answered this question years ago before it broke!That engine is known for lifter problems. I seriously doubt you need an engine. Get a second opinion. How many miles is on it? The lifters are know to get week and quit oiling making it sound like a rod knocking.

How do I figure out the capacities of the Avalanche? We never weighed fully loaded, so no clue there either :(135,000 miles

Not enough info.Towing 5-6k didn't damage the cam.These motors are known for eating cams/lifters - Retail dealer price seems to be around $2500... Not a cheap repair.

Has your Avalanche started using oil or smoking when cold? If so it is probably a slapping piston caused by a sticking oil ring. This is fairly common with the 5.3.( Google it ) It will only get worse and if you don't keep oil in it, it will go south in a hurry. The exact thing happened to my friend and it has been a nightmare since he replaced the engine.

Did we break our Avalanche? Do I need to get a 2500?

35 Replies

jwoods61us
Explorer
Mar 17, 2016
Has your Avalanche started using oil or smoking when cold? If so it is probably a slapping piston caused by a sticking oil ring. This is fairly common with the 5.3.( Google it ) It will only get worse and if you don't keep oil in it, it will go south in a hurry. The exact thing happened to my friend and it has been a nightmare since he replaced the engine.
dcg9381
Explorer
Mar 17, 2016
Not enough info.
Towing 5-6k didn't damage the cam.
These motors are known for eating cams/lifters - Retail dealer price seems to be around $2500... Not a cheap repair.
Luminajd
Explorer
Mar 17, 2016
How do I figure out the capacities of the Avalanche? We never weighed fully loaded, so no clue there either :(
135,000 miles
transamz9
Explorer
Mar 17, 2016
Luminajd wrote:
A few years ago we bought the combo of a 2007 Avalanche, 5.3 and a 2014 Grey Wolf, 30 ft, dry weight of 5296, and have towed this combo about 6 times/year.
Yesterday my Avalanche started to make this horrible/weird clicking noise. Local mechanic thinks it is the cylinder lifter or cam shaft and we may need to get a new engine.
Questions
1) I was naive and never did enough research, did we break our truck by pulling this camper?
2) Would you trade in the truck as-is, taking the hit on the potentially broken motor, for a 2500 of something
3) Would you fix the camshaft/whatever it is and keep it as it is a fine towing combo
4) Would you do what you need to do to get it running and trade it off for a 2500
My brother is a mechanic so if it turns out to need an engine he is checking prices to see how cheap it can be done.
Thanks for the advice, and I realize I'm an idiot and should have answered this question years ago before it broke!

That engine is known for lifter problems. I seriously doubt you need an engine. Get a second opinion. How many miles is on it? The lifters are know to get week and quit oiling making it sound like a rod knocking.
Terryallan
Explorer II
Mar 17, 2016
Not enough info. What are the capacities of the Avalanche? And how much does the TT weigh loaded ready to camp.

Could be it just broke.

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Did we break our Avalanche? Do I need to get a 2500?

35 Replies

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